Mr. Olusegun Ayo Omosehin, Commissioner for Insurance and CEO of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), urged Nigerians to regard insurance as a form of social protection and a driver of economic recovery rather than simply a financial commodity. Speaking at the official launch of the Lagos State Building Insurance Scheme, he said insurance cushions families and businesses after building collapses, fires or floods by providing funds that lessen hardship and speed up recovery. Without insurance, he warned, disasters can plunge individuals, firms and governments into deep financial trouble and create avoidable losses.
Omosehin emphasized that mandatory building insurance should be seen as a safety measure for the public, not an unnecessary regulatory burden. Under the Lagos scheme, public buildings and structures above a specified height must carry insurance that protects owners, tenants, visitors and passersby. The law’s aim is to ensure a source of compensation when losses arise from negligence, fire, flood or structural failure. He praised Lagos for operationalizing a national law at the local level, turning a legislative requirement into enforceable practice, and described it as the kind of federal–state collaboration the Act intended. He added that Nigeria’s issue has not
